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Sunday brings the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club earning promotion and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked pundit Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a genuine opportunity."

He is offering predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, readers and a assortment of guests.

For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their scores? Share your own projections below.

The most popular scoreline chosen for each game is used in the tables at the end of this page.

Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.

Ray, who competes for Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualification rounds.

A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a single-elimination, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a highly sought-after spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I am feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I have a really good coach with me and preparation has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you enter this job and there is an chance to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.

"I beat Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him recently just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.

"In my opinion he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The Blues were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought they've turned a corner, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because the Merseyside club are such a dangerous team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

On form you would probably back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

Chelsea haven't given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea will win this match because they are at home and they are due a win.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Stingray's prediction: With this being at the Bridge, I am going to back Chelsea. I think they will start off really well and go 2-0 up, then Everton will nick one back but then Chelsea score late. 3-1

AI's prediction: 2-0

Liverpool vs Brighton

Anfield, 15:00 GMT

I'll be at this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from the Reds.

I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a great for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

They changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation and two up top.

All the talk is going to be talking about whether Salah is back for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he apologises.

Slot's focus will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.

It's fair to say it is the same for most teams but I find Brighton so mercurial. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are quite open too.

Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.

I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will likely do poorly - but I do think they can get something at Anfield.

Sutton's prediction: 2-2

Stingray's prediction: This is a game which is going to give Liverpool a bit more of their confidence back. Obviously they had a good win in midweek and they can build more momentum here. 2-1

AI's prediction: 3-1

Sunday, 14 December

Sunderland vs Newcastle

Stadium of Light, 14:00 GMT

The Wearside club have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Apart from their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.

It is anticipated that that trend to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of their rivals' energetic style.

We saw how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and should be recognised too.

All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture